A 72-year-old bicyclist was rushed to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries Thursday night after a collision with a vehicle on Willard Parkway in Elk Grove, according to police. The bicyclist's condition was unknown at the time investigators gave their update.
The Elk Grove Police Department
said the collision happened at Willard Parkway and Matina Drive. Officers closed a stretch of Willard Parkway between Blossom Ridge and Bilby for about an hour or less while they worked the scene, and traffic was detoured through the area as the investigation continued. The department asked drivers to avoid the area and take alternate routes while crews and investigators remained on site.
Police said the driver of the vehicle stayed at the scene after the crash and was cooperating with investigators. No further details on how the collision happened, or what led up to it, were released in the department's update.
A Pattern of Serious Crashes on Elk Grove Roadways
Thursday's crash adds to a string of serious vehicle collisions involving pedestrians and cyclists reported around Elk Grove in recent months. In one case, a 39-year-old Sacramento man died after he was struck while sitting on his bicycle in the road on Calvine Road between Bader Road and Bradshaw Road around 2:33 a.m., according to a report from FOX40. In that crash, the driver also stopped and cooperated with investigators, who said there were no signs of impairment and that speed did not appear to be a factor.
In a separate incident, a 72-year-old pedestrian died after being hit by a car around 7:20 a.m. at the intersection of Hampton Oak Drive and Canyon View Drive, ABC10 reported. Investigators in that case said the driver likewise remained at the scene and cooperated, and that speed and impairment did not appear to be factors. CBS Sacramento also reported on a separate fatal crash involving a 19-year-old near Willard Parkway and Bilby Road, the same general corridor where Thursday's collision occurred.
None of those earlier cases have been tied by investigators to Thursday's crash, and the cause of this latest collision has not been determined. Elk Grove police have not released additional details about the bicyclist's identity or his condition following his transport to the hospital.
The collision also comes against a statewide backdrop of serious bicycle crashes. California recorded 145 bicyclist fatalities in 2023, down about 20.8% from 183 in 2022, according to the state Office of Traffic Safety. The figures count deaths, not injury crashes, and do not establish a trend for Elk Grove or explain what happened on Willard Parkway. The state’s traffic-safety summary lists bicycle fatalities alongside other measures of road deaths.
Elk Grove’s 2021 Bicycle, Pedestrian and Trails Master Plan analyzed city collision data from October 2013 through December 2018. It counted 249 reported collisions involving bicyclists during that period, including one fatal crash and nine crashes resulting in severe injuries. The plan also found that nearly one-third of bicycle collisions involved a cyclist traveling straight while a driver turned right, providing broader local safety context without establishing a connection to Thursday’s crash. The city’s master plan calls for network improvements and policies to make walking and biking safer and more connected.
